When the 2025 Budget left grassroots music venues facing a steep increase in business rates costs, many venues found themselves at immediate risk of closure. Music Venue Trust appointed Whitehouse Communications to deliver an urgent public affairs campaign to influence decision-makers at the highest levels of government. By combining rapid evidence-led advocacy, targeted parliamentary engagement and coordinated political pressure, the campaign secured the inclusion of grassroots music venues in the Government’s one-off business rates support package, protecting a vital part of the UK’s cultural infrastructure and delivering £4.8 million in financial relief across the sector. Grassroots music venues were one of only two sectors, alongside pubs, to receive targeted support through the scheme.
The challenge
Grassroots music venues play a critical role in the UK’s cultural and creative ecosystem, providing a platform for emerging artists, supporting local economies and sustaining vibrant communities. Following the 2025 Budget, however, the sector faced a significant financial challenge as many venues were excluded from vital business rates relief measures.
Without intervention, many venues faced the prospect of severe financial hardship and potential closure. Music Venue Trust recognised the need for an immediate and coordinated response to ensure policymakers understood both the scale of the threat and the wider cultural and economic consequences of inaction.
Whitehouse Communications was appointed to design and deliver a high-impact public affairs campaign at pace, with the objective of securing direct government support and ensuring grassroots music venues were recognised as a priority sector deserving targeted assistance.
Our approach
With limited time and high political stakes, Whitehouse Communications moved quickly to develop and deliver a robust, integrated programme of proactive and reactive public affairs engagement. The campaign was designed to articulate Music Venue Trust’s concerns clearly, provide evidence of the threat of closure for grassroots music venues, and situate this in the context of the wider cultural and music industry.
Whitehouse rapidly developed a robust evidence-based briefing highlighting the venues affected and the consequences of inaction. We mobilised parliamentary support by engaging constituency MPs and wider backbenchers, encouraging them to raise the issue through oral and written parliamentary questions. We also secured the backing of more than 24 MPs to sign a joint letter to the Prime Minister and Chancellor, while providing tailored correspondence for additional MPs to raise concerns privately. Through this, we secured opportunities to directly present to DCMS and Treasury officials.
The outcome
The campaign achieved a clear and measurable policy outcome. Following sustained parliamentary and political engagement, the Government announced that grassroots music venues would be included in its one-off business rates support package.
The decision delivered £4.8 million in direct financial support to grassroots venues across the UK, providing much-needed stability to a sector facing significant financial uncertainty. Importantly, grassroots music venues were one of only two sectors, alongside pubs, selected to receive targeted support through the scheme.
Beyond the immediate financial benefit, the campaign helped secure recognition of the cultural and economic value of grassroots music venues within government, demonstrating the effectiveness of a strategically coordinated public affairs campaign in delivering tangible policy change.
